By Tracee Hutchison*“DON’T it always seem to go, that you don’t know what you’ve got til it’s gone, You take out the arts, you’ll lose the Peninsula’s heart” – with thanks to Joni Mitchell. When over 300 people turn up on a chilly night for a council meeting, that’s a community asking to be heard. When they’re singing a universally loved protest anthem, Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi”, and re-working the chorus into a call to action – that’s probably a sign the council has struck a wrong chord with its recent decision to cut $480k in creative arts funding…
Browsing: protest
A RECENT spate of youth crime across the peninsula has pushed fed up residents to the brink, with a protest held outside the Somerville office of Hastings MP Paul Mercurio on Friday afternoon, 21 February.The small group of demonstrators were calling for immediate action to address the rising concerns surrounding youth crime in the community. Holding placards emblazoned with messages like “End violence”, “Enough is enough”, and “Tough laws, safer streets”, the protestors, a mix of concerned residents, stood united in their demand for changes aimed at curbing the surge in criminal activity in the area. The peaceful protest saw…
RESIDENTS have been watching the slow march of nature reclaiming habitat in what was once an explosive industrial site – the Mt Martha quarry. Peregrine falcons use the exposed rock faces as nesting sites while white-faced herons prowl among puddles for tadpoles and frogs. However, the fenced-off quarry is seen as an “asset” by Mornington Peninsula Shire, land that can be sold and developed. Until a few months ago, the shire had allowed the quarry on the Esplanade between Mt Martha and Safety Beach to be used as storage for rocks and soil destined to combat erosion at McCrae. But…